The Consequences of Triumph
by Charming Visions
Summary: With the triumph of Voldermort comes the consequences that will change many lives.


The screams had ceased almost immediately. The smirk was removed from his face as he fell to his knees. Normally a look of fear would remain to name the weapon used for murder, but in his case, his face left a blank. They had suspected he would shrivel to ash or melt away, but his body lye in the bloodied pool solid and whole. Almost immediately the marks began to burn and all knew their master had fallen. One by one they apparated at his body glancing both fearful and surprised at his fallen corpse. And with each new witch or wizard that arrived, another pair of eyes glared hatefully at the man before them, the half-blood that had succeeded, the man that would send them all to Azkaban. The Order would arrive shortly, but no one dared to disapparate, it would have been useless, and they had betrayed their master once. A man in a hood walked up to the man and spat in his face.

"You may have defeated the greatest wizard to walk these grounds, but you will never be worth more than the dirt you stand on."

"Perhaps that is so, Lucius, but I will not spend my days waiting for a kiss."

The elder Malfoy closed his eyes tightly and turned his head. He looked once more at the man before him, and realized that the man had to be respected. He then turned to the remaining Death Eaters and nodded. "It is time." He whispered, and then, "It is time!" He shouted. The other Death Eaters removed their hoods and one by one they kissed their masters dirtied hands before drinking a vial of potion. Suicide was better after all, than a life ruled by blood traitors and mudbloods.

Harry stood in silence as the Death Eaters collapsed to the ground until all that was left was their spy, Draco. Harry walked to the young man and grasped his arm. "I am sorry about your father." He whispered to Draco's ear.

Draco nodded, "I am too. He died how he lived, by the orders of another man." Harry gave a sad smile and the two young men walked to Voldermort's dead body and waited. It was not long until the Order members began to appear. Relief lining their faces, but a sad knowledge remained in their eyes. Another would come, and till then, they would wait and live in peace. Dumbledore appeared at last, and his walk to Harry was a slow one. He had been badly injured, and blood left small rivers down his leg. Harry stared at him with concern, yet Dumbledore waved it away.

"I am fine Harry, I have done my job and by doing so, you have succeeded, I am fine." He said in his raspy voice.

"Then why are you bleeding?"

Dumbledore winked, "I couldn't go without battle scars now could I?"

Harry laughed for the first time in weeks, "No, I guess you couldn't." Harry then walked past Dumbledore to look upon the faces of those whom had survived: Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Bill, Charlie, Percy, Molly and Arthur, Neville, Luna, Blaise, Snape, and Minerva. Harry acknowledged all of their presences, but two people whom Harry had loved were missing. Dumbledore seemed to notice his stiffened spine.

"Remus died two hours ago Harry, he's with James, Lily, and Sirius now."

Harry swallowed and closed his eyes, begging the tears to die. There was still one person missing. Ron walked up to Harry and hugged him. "She's gone Harry. She's gone." Harry and Ron then collapsed to their knees and Harry's entire body shook as the tears overcame him. The pain was so raw, so blinding, no torture could compare to this. It was not until a few minutes later did Harry feel Ron's tears. His only sister was dead, his sole job was to protect her, it was a promise he had made to Harry, and he had failed in so many ways.

Harry pulled back, the tears having left pure streaks through the caked dirt and blood. "Where is she?"

Hermione ran to him. "Harry are you sure you're ready for this?"

"Where is she?"

She looked to the ground as she steadied her voice, "She's at the gates." Harry nodded numbly as Hermione fell to her knees, burying Ron's face into her shoulder. He stood up and walked, he walked through the members, over the dead bodies, he walked through the woods, and around the castle. It was only too fitting that Voldermort had attacked Hogwarts. He finally made it to the white tents at the gates and looked around and the cots covered with blankets. He lifted the blankets and stared at the faces, the first one he was able to recognize was Remus's. Harry inhaled a sob as he bit his fist. Once Sirius had died, Remus had dedicated himself to Harry. He stayed when Harry had pushed, and he cried with Harry instead of advising. Harry bent over the dead body and kissed the man's forehead. "Goodbye Remus. Tell Mum and Dad that I love them, will you do that? I hope you died with the peace I'll never know." He grabbed Remus's cold hand and squeezed the lifeless fist. After staring at Remus's closed eyes and lips he inhaled deeply trying to calm the oncoming tremors. After placing Remus's hand onto his stomach, Harry covered him once more with a blanket and went in search of Ginny. After raising a few more blankets he finally came to her body and his heart died.

He fell to his knees as an anguished cry left his lips. He bent over her body and kissed her lips, praying the warmth would revive her cold body. Yet she did not respond. The passionate kisses they had once shared were gone and he was left alone. Always alone. He cried silently and finally spoke. "You weren't supposed to die. I was supposed to protect you, I was supposed to… Ginny please wake up, please don't be dead. I need you, don't you know that? You have to wake up, you can't leave me here. Ginny, oh god…Ginny!" He dropped his head to her hand as the sobs overcame him once more. His shoulders shook as the pain bleed through his tears. The once person he had ever made a promise to was gone and he could do nothing to bring her back. By the time the last tear fell, a headache burned his mind and his voice was strained. Behind him Ron guided him up and Harry looked at Ginny, his Ginny. Her face ashen, and a cut lined her cheek, the only redness lined its creases. Her red hair was brown with dirt and lay in disarray leaving a stark contrast between it and the white cot. He leaned over and kissed her once more, his throat not allowing him to speak another word.

Ron whispered into his ear, "Come on mate, there is a bed for you and arrangements to be made in the morning." Harry shook his head violently, he wanted to stay with Ginny. But Ron begged with his eyes, he needed his time with his sister. Harry then glanced once more at Ginny's lifeless face and turned to leave the tent. He ran into the castle only to be stopped by Draco.

"In here Potter." He pulled Harry into a class room and pushed him to an empty cot. Harry sat down at placed his head into his hands. He had won the ultimate victory but instead of feeling triumph he felt cold and empty.

* * *

The following week was full of grief, everyone had lost someone. The funeral services were held in threes, until finally the day for Remus Lupin's and Ginerva Weasley's came. Remus Lupin's was first and has tearful as it had been, it contained a lighter atmosphere than Ginny's did. When Ginny's began the depression ran deep. Charlie had been asked to speak, an honor he had agreed to fulfill quickly.

He walked to the front and cleared his throat. "Many of you knew my sister, and if I had the strength or will to give a speech, I would. But I can't, and all of you know why. I think Ginny knew this because she wrote a letter to leave behind, well three in all. The last one has been addressed to all of you, please bear with me." Tears threatened to fall as Charlie inhaled:

"_My dearest friends,_

_How I long to be with you right now. To celebrate with you, to drink with you, and to share in the triumph that is rightfully ours. But I can't be_, _and it grieves me deeply. I have never been afraid of death, after the Chamber of Secrets, I knew death was not to be feared and I knew by joining the Order that my chances of surviving would be slim. They were quick, I was not quick enough. But enough of that depressing talk._

_I want all of you to know how very much I love you. You are the strongest people alive, and you deserve the utmost respect. I wish I could create a hundred more memories with you, but I hope you will cherish the memories that we have created, for I treasure them deeply. I don't know what I can say to help ease your pain, just know that I don't want you to pine over me. Death is as natural as birth, and although it is never a pleasant occasion, it is something that we must learn to cope with._

_I hate writing goodbye letters, especially since I am so alive at this moment, but I knew my family would never be able to give a service. My brothers can pretend all they like that they are tough but I know their softer side, it was the only advantage of being the only girl. I wish I could find the words to say more, but I feel as if I should say my final goodbye now. Rambling letters have never been a favorite of mine, I am sure many of you feel the same. So goodbye, I can only hope to see you someday many many years from now._

_With the deepest love,_

_Ginerva Weasley Potter._

The room remained silent as Charlie read, a few inserted laughs here and there, but with the final goodbye tears lined every face. Molly had buried her head into her husband's shoulder and Ron gripped Hermione's hand. Harry stared straight ahead as the lump in his throats grew. Charlie finally stepped off the podium and walked to Tonk's arms. People began to disperse, and Harry followed the Weasley's out of the room numbly. Back at the Burrow, the Weasley's had surrounded Bill as he began to read the letter left for them. Hermione had barricaded herself in Ginny's old room to read hers, and Harry walked out to the yards, his letter in hand. He sat down at a boulder by a small lake and stared down at the water. Ripples created themselves all across the otherwise peaceful water. Harry then opened the letter.

_My love,_

_First off I need to tell you this: stop brooding. I love you dearly but I know what you are doing and I want you to stop. We knew there was a possibility of my death as there was a possibility of yours, I just wish neither of us did die. I married you with the intentions of spending my every year with you, I never wanted to leave. That being said, I want you to know that these six months have meant everything to me. I don't care how long we were married, because every day was worth it. I've loved you from the moment I met you boarding the Hogwarts Express, and I'll love you until the world comes crashing down. That's the amazing thing about love, it never dies, but it can change._

_No woman ever wants her husband to chose another woman over her, but in our current circumstances, I do. I want you to fall in love again because I want you to be happy. The pain of your tears is far worse than any curse. You deserve a life you never had. You deserve a future that can only be achieved through your willingness. I don't expect you to forget, but I want you live your life, it's an amazing thing and it leaves us all too quickly._

_I am sorry that we could not have a family, believe me when I say that I looked forward to having many girls (someone has to makeup for mom's preference of boys) but most of all I am sorry that I had to leave you. Writing this letter tears me apart most of all because I know that as light-hearted as I want it sound, it is something I will not be able to achieve. I love you Harry, I love you more than anything please remember that._

_When you are ready, I want you to go to our Gringott's account. In our vault there is a chest. I had planned on giving it to you on our first anniversary, but it is something I think that will bring you closure. Please stay in touch with my family, they love as their own. Don't break away from Ron and Hermione, you are their best friend, and the only one who can make them see their idiotic ways._

_I am looking at my wedding band, I don't know if I ever told you how beautiful it was, and I don't think I told you enough how handsome you look in wedding robes…or when you first wake up. Every memory is flashing through my mind right now, it makes me smile._

_I love you Harry and you deserve so much. Please take what I wrote to heart. _

_Your most devoted wife,_

_Ginny._

Harry looked up at the stars and smiled through his tears. Ginny knew him so well, and he could hear the scolding in her beginning words. The memories of their years together began to flash through his mind. Their times at the lake, their times by the fireplace, her wedding dress, and their wedding night, their breakfasts together, their wedding dress, and finally the moment when they both knew the final battle was to be fought. He drew his knees up to his chest and continued to look up at the sapphire sky, listening to the water's ripples and the cricket's song. Finally he whispered.

"I love you Ginny."

A/N: I know you haven't heard from me in a while, my apologies. I'll start writing again in the summer, AP and ACT, I just don't have time, but I will. Please review. I'd like to know people still care.


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